first week of classes 27.9 - 1.10

Sunday was a lazy day; I simply visited Kaufland (in German: "Buying Land") to pick up some very cheap groceries. It is just up the tram line from the dorm and sort of like a mix between KMart and a 99 cent store. Strangely exhilarating. 

This was my first week of classes, but I didn't start until Wednesday because my class schedule consists of lessons only on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday and because Tuesday was St Wenceslas day. He's the patron saint of the Czech Republic.

Monday I woke up a bit late and met my friend Mark at a cafe in the afternoon. We continued on to DOX, a contemporary gallery in Prague 7 which is an area almost devoid of tourists. It sort of looks like Binghamton:

There were three large exhibits, one of which was closing that day: a retrospective-like show on Czech architect Jan Kaplický, who ran Future Systems (the design firm). 

He's known for designing the Lord's Media Center at Lord's Cricket Ground in London. It was a really cool exhibit overall, really well done. They showed hundreds of his plans, photos of his work, boards with inspiration collage, as well as many of the models made by Future Systems. It was curated in a way that seemed to express an intrinsic connection between the architect and his work. So, well done! I noted at the time that some of the work reminded me of Vivian's, and in fact she told me later of her love for Future Systems.

The next exhibit had to do with "the future" in another way. The show was called, literally "The future of the future". The sign on the wall introducing the whole thing was also very well done; I picked out one sentence which I thought particularly poignant: the current vision of the future "is one that is not an escape from the present and the past, [but] one that emphasizes sustainability and interconnectedness rather than progress and growth without limits" (Jaroslav Anděl). The exhibit featured works from artists, architects, and designers who envisioned a way of life just like the one described by Anděl. One piece was a model of what Brooklyn would look like one day--a sort of self-sufficient sustainable utopia. Others dealt with changing the way we live (literally our houses) to make them more relevant to the ways in which our world is changing (organic homes which are actually alive, or mobile homes that reflect the ebb and flow of people between urban and suburban areas).

After stumbling upon a random installation on the roof, we moved on.

The last exhibit dealt with past perceptions of the future as perpetuated by the communist regime in Czechoslovakia, with a particular focus on space exploration and living on other planets. While on the one hand it makes sense that the Communist regime would support the spread of these tales to distract from the declining conditions of the present with hope for the future, and because of the attention paid to space exploration in the world at large at that time, AND because of the allegorical potential of a new beginning with new way of life; it strikes me as a particularly Capitalistic thought system... boundless growth, a new frontier rather than improvement and reform on a smaller level. In any case, it was very interesting to see these silly myths which were contrasted with the work of artists who grew up during the occupation. While mostly satirical, it was clear that the propaganda had effected them in extremely formative ways and made a specific mark on their present world views.

Tuesday, St Wenceslas Day, was a nice holiday as well (in keeping with my entire time in Prague thus far). Hung out, went to the mall, didn't buy anything, helped my friend Neil with "taco night" (we all need a bit of home sometimes) which was complimented by the common room. I took some photos the other day, I hope my fellow ECES members won't mind their images being put up on the internet...

Fancy, no? Look how much fun we have!

Wednesday was my first class, art and architecture in the Czech lands. We started out with Gothic and Baroque styles. The first half of each class is a lecture with power-point, and the second half is a field trip! Every class! The cost of all the galleries and places we go is included in our tuition. The first day, we went to Old Town Square and climbed to the top of the spire in the old Town Hall. Great views.

Thursday was my other class, Czechoslovak New Wave (film class). It seems pretty cool; we watched a film called Černý Petr, made by the famous Czech filmmaker Miloš Forman who also directed One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest and Amadeus.. I thought the film was pretty cool so I volunteered to do the first presentation of the semester on that film in class next week. All day I ran around doing errands in preparation for my trip to Paris the upcoming weekend! Thursday evening I went to the opera with my roommate Brielle; our "dorm mother" Zuzana hooked us up with tickets. It was 200Kc (a little over $10), so I couldn't pass up an opportunity like that. We saw Don Giovanni at the Estates Theatre, which is where Mozart's famous opera originally premiered in 1787! The theatre was beautiful!

Another wonderful week in Prague. Stay tuned for details on my Parisian weekend!